Trevor Phillips stands by 'ridiculous' Sharia comparison

Trevor Phillips is standing by his claim that Christian groups seeking
exemptions from equality laws are like Muslims who want sharia rule in parts
of Britain, despite criticism that his comments were "strange" and
ridiculous".

Trevor Phillips: Religious rules should end “at the door of the temple” and give way to the “public law” laid down by ParliamentPhoto: REX

Mr Phillips insisted there was nothing controversial about his claim that religious authority should end “at the door of the temple” and give way to the “public law”.

The chairman of the Equality and Human Rights Commission argued that Roman Catholic adoption agencies and other faith groups providing public services could not operate by “a different set of laws” from the rest of society.
Should religion have a say over public law?

He was criticised by senior religious figures, including the former Archbishop of Canterbury, Lord Carey, who said his comments were “ridiculous”.

Legal specialists said Mr Phillips's comparison was “inflammatory” because Islamic sharia law was associated with draconian punishments in some parts of the world, such as stoning and amputation of limbs for crimes including theft and adultery.

However, Mr Phillips dismissed the criticism, insisting his comments should not be seen as controversial. “You would have to really work hard to make what I said 'inflammatory',” he said.

Mr Phillips singled out the adoption agencies that fought a long legal battle to avoid being forced to consent to placing children with homosexual couples under equality laws.

Last year, following a High Court case, the Charity Commission ruled against an exemption for Catholic Care, an adoption agency operating in Leeds.

Speaking at a debate in London on diverse societies, Mr Phillips backed the new laws, which led to the closure of all Catholic adoption agencies in England.

“You can’t say because we decide we’re different then we need a different set of laws,” he said, in comments reported by The Tablet, the Catholic newspaper.

“To me there’s nothing different in principle with a Catholic adoption agency, or indeed Methodist adoption agency, saying the rules in our community are different and therefore the law shouldn’t apply to us.

Why not then say sharia can be applied to different parts of the country? It doesn’t work.”

Dr Philip Giddings, chairman of the Church of England’s public affairs council, rejected Mr Phillips’s analysis. “It is a strange comparison,” he said.

Catholic adoption agencies were providing a voluntary service and which families and local authorities did not have to choose to use.

“It seems to me that the state is going a step too far to insist that certain kinds of adoption agencies and service providers cannot be allowed to make their offer like everybody else,” he said. “That does look awfully like discrimination against religious bodies.”

Mr Phillips’s remarks threatened to add to controversy over the role of religion in Britain.

Last week, a High Court judge ruled that it was unlawful for local councils to include Christian prayers in their formal meetings after a legal challenge by an atheist former councillor who objected.

The ruling immediately pitted the Government against the courts as ministers urged councils to defy the ban. Bideford council in Devon decided last night to appeal against the decision.

Last night, the council voted to appeal against the High Court ruling.

The National Secular Society, which supported the action against the council, said it was “confident” that their case would survive an appeal.